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A new species of Anomomorpha (Graphidaceae) from India

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  25 March 2010

Bharati SHARMA ,
U. MAKHIJA  and
Pradnya KHADILKAR
Bharati SHARMA
Affiliation:
Agharkar Research Institute, G.G. Agarkar Road, Pune— 411004, India. Email: uv_makhija@hotmail.com
U. MAKHIJA
Affiliation:
Agharkar Research Institute, G.G. Agarkar Road, Pune— 411004, India. Email: uv_makhija@hotmail.com
Pradnya KHADILKAR
Affiliation:
Agharkar Research Institute, G.G. Agarkar Road, Pune— 411004, India. Email: uv_makhija@hotmail.com
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Abstract

Anomomorpha elegans, a new species characterized by lirelline ascocarps, dark reddish brown, pruinose disc, bowl shaped exciple composed of elongate hyphae, hymenium inspersed with crystals, muriform ascospores and salazinic acid in the thallus, is described from India.

Keywords

lichenized ascomycetestaxonomy
Type
Research Article
Information
The Lichenologist , Volume 42 , Issue 3 , May 2010 , pp. 281 - 283
Copyright
Copyright © British Lichen Society 2010

Introduction

During our revision of the family Graphidaceae in India, we have recorded a large number of species in this family and we have described several new species in the genera Acanthothecis, Diorygma, Fissurina, Graphis, Hemithecium, Pallidogramme and Platythecium (Makhija & Adawadkar Reference Makhija and Adawadkar2003, Reference Makhija and Adawadkar2005a, Adawadkar & Makhija Reference Adawadkar and Makhija2004, Reference Adawadkar and Makhija2006, Reference Adawadkar and Makhija2007; Reference Makhija and Adawadkar2005b, Reference Adawadkar and Makhija2007; Makhija et al. Reference Makhija, Dube, Adawadkar and Chitale2005, Reference Adawadkar and Makhija2007; Sharma & Makhija Reference Sharma and Makhija2009). In this paper, we describe a new species of the little studied genus Anomomorpha.

The lichen genus Anomomorpha Nyl. is a genus in the Graphidaceae recently resurrected by Staiger (Reference Staiger2002). It is characterized by non-carbonized, poorly developed, bowl-shaped exciple consisting of elongate hyphae with thick walls which turn I+ orange to orange-brown, a weakly pruinose disc, inspersed hymenium, very small ascospores < 20 μm in length and by containing norstictic acid and neotricon.

So far only five species are known world-wide, namely Anomomorpha aggregans (Nyl.) Staiger, A. sordida Staiger, A. subtorquens (Nyl.) Staiger, A. turbulenta (Nyl.) Hue in Staiger (Reference Staiger2002) and A. roseola, recently described by Archer & Elix (Reference Archer and Elix2007) from Australia.

Only one species, A. subtorquens (Nyl.) Staiger, is known from India (Staiger Reference Staiger2002). A further new species is described here as Anomomorpha elegans.

Materials and Methods

Sections of thalli and ascomata were mounted in water, 10% KOH (K), Lugol's solution (I) and lactophenol cotton-blue (LPCB). All measurements were made on material mounted in water. Secondary products were identified by thin-layer chromatography following standardized methods (Culberson & Kristinsson Reference Culberson and Kristinsson1970; Culberson Reference Culberson1972; White & James Reference White and James1985) using the solvent systems benzene-dioxane-acetic acid (180:45:5) and toluene-ethyl acetate-formic acid (139:83:8). The specimens were examined under UV light (365 nm). The specimens are deposited in the Ajrekar Mycological Herbarium (AMH).

The Species

Anomomorpha elegans B. O. Sharma, Makhija & Khadilkar sp. nov

Anomomorpha elegans distinctus inter omnibus Anomomorphae specibus ob presentia acidi salazinici.

Typus: India, Karnataka, Sirsi-Jog falls, 26.02.1977, A. V. Prabhu & M.B. Nagarkar, 77.201 (AMH—holotypus).

(Fig.1)

Fig. 1. Anomomorpha elegans (77.201—holotype, AMH). A, habitus; B, vertical section of the ascocarp; C, ascospores. Scales: A= 100 μm; B = 50 μm; C = 10 μm.

Thallus corticolous, crustose, epiphloeodal, brownish grey, warty, thick, cracked, with a thin pseudocortex.

Ascocarps lirelline, creamish, semi-emergent, simple to branched, curved, 0·5–4 mm long, ends round, thalline margin slightly raised. Disc broad, 0·2–0·7 mm wide, dark reddish brown, covered with a white pruina. Exciple divergent, non-carbonized, laterally poorly developed, bowl-shaped with elongate hyphae, I+ orange brown, distinctly yellow at the base. Epithecium distinct, brown, 12–17·5 μm thick. Hymenium hyaline, moderately to heavily inspersed with colourless crystals, I+ blue violet, 75–150 μm high. Paraphyses simple. Asci 8–spored. Ascospores hyaline, muriform with 3 transverse and 0–1 longitudinal septa per segment, 8–12 × 5–7 μm, I+ blue violet.

Chemistry. K+ yellow orange, KC−, C−, P+ orange, salazinic acid present. UV−.

Remarks. Anomomorpha elegans is distinct from all other species of this genus in having salazinic acid in its thallus.

Although the presence of norstictic acid and neotricone has been reported as a generic character of the genus Anomomorpha (Staiger Reference Staiger2002), our new species does not contain norstictic acid and neotricone, but all other morphological characters of the new species agree very well with the generic characters of Anomomorpha, especially the heavily inspersed hymenium and exciple composed of elongate cells of hyphae with thick walls.

Anomomorpha aggregans (Nyl.) Staiger and A. roseola A. W. Archer & Elix are somewhat similar in having submuriform ascospores exceeding 10 μm. Both these species, however, not only differ with respect to the appearance of the general morphology of the thallus and ascomata, but also differ in their chemistry. Anomomorpha aggregans has norstictic and connorstictic acids and A. roseola has neotricone, virensic, norperistictic, norstictic, salazinic and protocetraric acids.

Anomomorpha elegans has been collected from the moist deciduous forest of Sirsi in the western Ghats of south India at an average elevation of 590 m.

Additional specimens examined. India: Karnataka: Sirsi-Jog falls, Devimane Ghat, 1977, A. V. Prabhu & M. B. Nagarkar, 77.202, 77.203, 77.204 (AMH).

We are grateful to the Department of Science and Technology (DST), and Ministry of Environment and Forest (MoE & F), Government of India, New Delhi, for financial support.

References

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Figure 0

Fig. 1. Anomomorpha elegans (77.201—holotype, AMH). A, habitus; B, vertical section of the ascocarp; C, ascospores. Scales: A= 100 μm; B = 50 μm; C = 10 μm.